It is time to kick off the 2020 runDisney Princess Half Marathon weekend! First stop of the weekend (other than the hotel for a few hours of shut-eye) - the expo! Y'all know that I love race expos - between checking out vendors, shopping for merchandise and meeting up with friends it is just time that I always enjoy about race weekends. runDisney races have some pretty awesome expos, but you definitely have to have a plan in order to make the most of your time there.
While the expo was scheduled to open at 10:00am, we arrived around 8:30am to snap a few pictures and line up for merchandise. The past few years Race Retreat included early access to the expo which was a very nice perk, but the redid Race Retreat and named it Runner's Square which did not offer this perk. Boo.
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There were a few others arriving as well, but not too many yet. We met up with Sarah as we were walking in and got into line for merchandise which honestly wasn't that bad yet. Plus they were playing good music and had coffee and snacks on hand for purchase...no hanger fits, princesses!
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A few days before, some the official race merchandise was released via Disney Parks Blog. Everyone has now had a few days to analyze what they were wanting to get their hands on so it made it easier for me to know what I was looking for. From tank tops, to hats, to jackets, wine glasses and more, there was a lot of gear fit for a princess. I personally like the delayed release because there is a lot less time for personal shoppers/eBayers to hop in an buy the merchandise just to mark it up so runners arriving later in the weekend have to pay a high premium for items.
We came up with our game plan and make our tentative lists. Around 9:30 they let us in...let the madness begin!
We came up with our game plan and make our tentative lists. Around 9:30 they let us in...let the madness begin!
The new arena at Wide World of Sports really provide ample space for the official merchandise. There was plenty of room for an abundance of merchandise to be out and very spacious aisles to allow shoppers to browse without pushing.
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Things were VERY well stocked and organized with items for each race or the challenge all together. There was definitely a very good assortment of merchandise to select from (way more than the preview lead you to think). There was also a really good amount of generic runDisney merchandise.
 |  Source: Disney Parks Blog  Source: Disney Parks Blog | |
I swiftly gathered my items and moved off to the side to try on the shirt for sizing. Can I just say how annoying women's cut shirts can be sometimes to try to judge what size you need. Anyways, I digress. Obviously, a lot of people were making their final selections at this point as well....
We got checked out pretty quickly and got out of there before it got crazy. Later in the afternoon there were reports of lines over an hour just to get into the merchandise area!
We got checked out pretty quickly and got out of there before it got crazy. Later in the afternoon there were reports of lines over an hour just to get into the merchandise area!
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We headed over to the Field House next to pick up our bibs. I was crazy shocked at how empty the packet pickup area was, but I had to remind myself that it was still very early in the morning and most of the crowd was at the merchandise area or haven't arrive to race weekend yet.
Side note: if you forgot your waiver, you can print them as you are walking into the Visa Athletic Center....right, Sarah? Bibs were divided into sections for Kids Races, 5K, 10K, 1/2 Marathon, and Fairy Tale Challenge. Even with having to pick up twice (5K and Fairy Tale Challenge, we were in and out within a few minutes).
Side note: if you forgot your waiver, you can print them as you are walking into the Visa Athletic Center....right, Sarah? Bibs were divided into sections for Kids Races, 5K, 10K, 1/2 Marathon, and Fairy Tale Challenge. Even with having to pick up twice (5K and Fairy Tale Challenge, we were in and out within a few minutes).
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Next up we headed to the Visa Athletic Center to collect our race shirts and check out the other vendors on hand. As we entered the Visa Athletic Center, the crowds started to pick up slightly but not too much. Most everyone was in the official merchandise area at the arena, so this building was still pretty empty which made shopping and browsing much more enjoyable.
As we made our way around the expo, it wasn't too crowded on the expo floor. We were able to approach all of the booths easily and check everything out pretty easily. Granted, there were some booths that were a little crazy busy, but it wasn't bad. There were special edition items and new releases galore.
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I am happy to report though that princesses remained very well behaved again this year. There were no reports of shoving, throwing items, etc, as there was in 2016. Well done ladies! Thank you for being civil princesses.
Princess Half Marathon weekend expo 2020 was a success - now let's head to Epcot and get ready for tomorrow's 5K!
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Question of the Day: What is your favorite part about race expos?
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